There have been developed a wide variety of prefabricated panels or the like for multiple uses including building structures. One eminently successful type of prefabricated panel is plywood. There have also been developed a variety of sandwich structures having, for example, a honeycomb core.
In the construction of buildings various types of preformed panels have been employed and in the field of concrete buildings it is known, for example, to pour large concrete panels which generally have reinforcing steel therein and may have other materials such as insulation included therein, for use as walls, floors and the like.
The present invention comprises a panel having an expanded plastic core of sheet-like configuration with thin reinforcing strips bonded to front and back surfaces thereof, at least along the edges of the core. This panel has a variety of uses and may be particularly advantageously employed by attaching a wire mesh to one surface in spaced relation thereto for receiving concrete. Panels in accordance with the present invention may be joined together to form a desired shape or structure and, with the above-noted wire mesh on the outer surface thereof, concrete may then be applied to produce a structurally sound building or the like wherein the panels of the present invention form an integral part thereof.